Chablis
The Chablis region is the northernmost wine district of Burgundy, France. The grapevines around the town of Chablis are almost all Chardonnay, making a dry white wine renowned for the purity of its aroma and taste.
The northern location (48°N) means that Chablis wines have more acidity and less fruit flavours than other Chardonnays, but their pure, minerally style has great elegance. They often have a "flinty" note, sometimes described as "goût de pierre à fusil" (gunflint).
The story of Chablis and its vineyards is of cycles of slow recoveries after violent setbacks, both human and viticultural.
It is likely that vines came to the region with the Romans, if not before. As elsewhere, the Dark Ages saw monasteries putting great effort into viticulture for communion wine, and the proximity of Auxerre meant that the market in Paris was readily accessible.
There are records in the mid-15th century of Chablis wine being shipped to England, Flanders and Picardy. But in February 1568 the town was razed by the Huguenots, and the region did not really recover until the 18th century. Then came the ravages of the Revolution, the Little Ice Age and Prussian invasions. Just as the vineyards were being built back up, they were hit first by mildew in 1880, and then by phylloxera.
Again the region recovered, producing over 160,000 cases per year in the 1930's, but it took a heavy toll in World War II, and barely 5000 cases were produced in 1945. Production recovered to over 100,000 cases by 1949, but the vineyards were devastated by the late frosts of 1957 and 1961. Many were not replanted.
Appellation
The Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée was designated in 1938 and covers 6834 hectares, of which 4820ha are currently planted with vines.
There are four classifications, in increasing order of quality :
Petit Chablis AOC - approximately 1550ha
Chablis AOC - 4400ha
Chablis Premier Cru AOC - 750ha, yield restricted to 50hl/ha
Chablis Grand Cru AOC - 100ha, yield restricted to 45hl/ha
Geography
The region covers 15km x 20km across 27 communes, either side of the Serein river. The soil is Kimmeridge Clay with outcrops of the chalk that extends from Sancerre up to the White Cliffs of Dover.
The Grand Cru vineyards occupy a chain of three interlocking limestone slopes on the right bank overlooking the river. The seven Grand Cru vineyards are (from southeast to northwest): Blanchot, Les Clos, Valmur, Grenouilles, Vaudesir, Les Preuses and Bougros.
The Premier Crus lie on a series of hillsides on both banks of the river. The best Premier Crus are also on the right bank facing the southwest. There are 79 Premier Cru vineyards, including Les Beauregards, Beauroy, Berdiot , Chaume de Talvat , Côte de Cuissy , Côte de Jouan , Côte de Léchet, Côte de Vaubarousse, Fourchaume, Les Fourneaux, Mont de Milieu, Montée de Tonnerre, Montmains, Vaillons, Vau de Vey, Vau Ligneau, Vaucoupin and Vosgros.
"Chablis" in the New World
Until the 1970's, producers in the New World labelled their wines with names familiar to their customers. Hence the name "Chablis" would be applied to any dry white wine, regardless of where it came from or what grapes it was made from. Pressure from the French government and the rise of varietal labelling means that these semi-generic names are dying out.
Source: Wikipedia
